You’re a tourist in New York City, looking to add a bit of old-world charm to your evening out with your loved one. Naturally, after leaving the theater, you head uptown to Central Park for a romantic trip in an one of the city’s iconic horse-drawn carriages old-timey electric cars.

That’s the vision of the future proposed by NYCLASS, an animal rights organization that’s been railing against what it calls a dangerous and abusive industry since forming in 2008. Recognizing the need for a replacement for the carriages, which generate millions of dollars of revenue for the city and employ dozens of drivers, the organization has come up with a novel, promising solution. Electric automobiles like the one above, styled after early-20th century cars, which, according to NYCLASS, will satisfy tourists’ hunger for old-world artifice, let drivers keep their jobs, and maintain and even increase the city’s revenue stream, and end a living nightmare for stables full of innocent animals.

“For years and years, activists have tried to do things like ban the industry, without a replacement,” NYCLASS director Allie Feldman told ANIMAL. “And those efforts have been unsuccessful because the City Council realizes the horses are a part of the city’s tourism. We realize that if we want to get these horses off the street, we need to work with the industry and come up with a solution that would replace the horses and the jobs without just putting the drivers out.”

To that end, the organization has contracted a Florida car restoration firm to build a prototype of the electric car, and is petitioning City Council to allow trial run along the carriage route through Central Park to test the cars’ feasibility.

The only roadblock, according to Feldman, is Council Speaker and 2013 mayoral candidate Christine Quinn. Feldman says the electric car pilot has the support of 32 of City Council’s 51 members, including all Manhattan members–except for Quinn, who Feldman describes as having “her hands in the pockets of the carriage drivers” via campaign donations.

There’s no current bill that would allow NYCLASS’s pilot program to move forward–Feldman says they’re “building up support for the concept of a pilot” –but the organization says it would come out with legislation if it could get Quinn on board to allow a vote (as council speaker, Quinn has the power to decide which pending bills are voted on and which aren’t).

The campaign is intended to “Highlight Quinn’s record on animals, living wages, human rights, term limits, et cetera.” Feldman says. “To show people that Quinn isn’t what she makes herself out to be. And we feel that a way that a person treats animals in New York City is reflective of the way that they will treat humans.”

“Like I said, there’s been 32 councilmembers who have come out and publicly supported the pilot program. They’ve all sent letters personally to Christine Quinn, asking her to come on board,” she adds later. “But she sucks.”

The question was, will these old timey electric cars replace horse drawn carriages? Gee, I hope not. Do you realize how unprogressive that is? Electric cars leave a HUGE carbon footprint and they are pretty ugly to boot.

I heard someone say these were Great Gatsby cars.
The one shown is the wrong era. Gatby didn't end so well either, so I think the this whole idea is a bust.

They say Christine Quinn is the only roadblock to their misguided efforts? This group, NY[no]CLASS is primarily funded by Steve Nislick, the real estate mogul who owns Manhattan Mini Storage and want to get his hands on the prime real estate upon which stands the four main stables housing the Horse and Carriages. Steve Nislick and his non-profit NY[no]CLASS has in it's pockets: PETA, RARA, HSUS, WAR, and other fringe "radical" animal rights activists who embody a misguided effort to break any remaining bond between humans and the animal kingdom. Those horses are our livelihood, our partners. While Steve Nislick and his ill-intentioned cronies are just a bunch of hoods.

"…a dangerous and abusive industry…"
My understanding is that NOT one citation for abuse, for lack of care, for any form of mistreatment has ever been written to any member of the Horse and Carriage Association of NYC. And that is over their entire history of operating carriages in New York City.
"…a living nightmare for stables full of innocent animals…"
So say again, the "Neigh-sayers". The carriage horse people have a huge open house called ClipClop-NYC every spring, to which the public is invited. The event includes a tour of the stable(s), viewing of each and any carriage horse. The entire stable is open for walking through and inspection. All one has to do is register for the event.
And during the interim, groups can request a tour, by properly submitting a request to the Horse & Carriage Association. If that is not an Open Door Policy to Honesty, nothing is. Because the stables are a operating business with liability, it is perfectly understood that one can not just meander in and stroll through. But those who ask, are polite… are always welcome.
Allie Feldman statement: "And those efforts have been unsuccessful because the City Council realizes the horses are a part of the city’s tourism. We realize that if we want to get these horses off the street, we need to work with the industry and come up with a solution that would replace the horses and the jobs without just putting the drivers out.” Well, is absolutely misleading and ludicrous.
1st, the "WE" who want the horses out, are truly anti-horse people. They do not understand that working horses / draft horses need to keep a routine and work to maintain muscle health and also a mental / healthy attitude & spirit.
That working / draft horses, who are trained to drive (pull a carriage) take pride in that skill, and have a bond in partnership with their teamsters. And that they actually look forward to their routine and performance.
2nd, "WE" need to work with the industry… They have done nothing but interfere with the safe operation of the carriages & horses with their activism, their baiting, and their outright lies and propaganda.
Those "WE" folks / anti-horse people promote photos and stretch the stories attached to them with such spinning of the story(s), to which then become outlandish lies. When one researches the entire truth to the matter, a whole different perspective of each and every story comes to light.
3rd, "…would replace the horses and the jobs without just putting the drivers out.", again is another misleading and outright lie. The drivers are "Teamsters", to which are devoted to their carriage horse(s). They are horse-people. They are not chauffeurs nor taxi drivers. And the hundreds of thousands of dollars to buy, and more to maintain one of those electric contraptions would be far from their blue collar wage earnings. They are honest and hard working, folks who support themselves and their families in a time honored tradition.
4th, "…petitioning City Council to allow trial run along the carriage route through Central Park to test the cars’ feasibility." Central Park was built specifically for Horses! Read the history of it's construction, it's design, and it's carriage ways. One should be ashamed of changing that envisioned concept, of motoring over the history and time honored tradition.

A major point of the anti-horse people has been the safety of public, within horse drawn carriages. To which I say, the "Horse" has Always had the Right of Way, upon any roadway or street within America. Every state has laws on the books, from the earliest days of the automobiles arrival upon the scene. And this is to included NYC.
It is about time, that those safety laws be enforced more strictly. It is time to re-educate the motoring public, that "Sharing The Road" is not an option of politeness… But it is the Law!

And I am so tired of the fabrication of untruths.

I can list factual web links for anyone to explore, to the exact sources themselves.

And NYClass is for sure, not an exact source. They are activists & protesters. They refuse to have commentary, no matter how factual it might be, placed upon their walls. They will not rationally debate, nor be open minded. NYClass has No involvement in the care of horses.

They do not rescue, nor do they donate to helping any rescue with any substantial donation to my knowledge. Prove me wrong on that…

And for the like of their own cause of horses in traffic, under bit, in downtown NYC…

Why is it, they do not protest in all fairness, against the NYC Police Mounted Patrol Unit? Those horses breath the same air, have to deal with congestion & traffic.

And spent shift hours on duty.

Are placed into stalls. And basically have the same care, feed and services to them as carriage horses…

Oh…. could it be, that if one where to wave signage, yell & protest in raised voices to a NYC Police horse, just one might get arrested?